Vaca Profana Lyrics in English by Caetano Veloso, Maria Gadú
Profana means "profane" or "sacrilegious." It's a striking word, especially when paired with "Vaca" (cow) in the song's title, "Vaca Profana."
Caetano Veloso uses this word to evoke a powerful image of a sacred, almost divine, cow that is also rebellious and unconventional. It challenges traditional notions of holiness and purity, making it a memorable and thought-provoking choice for a song title and a key theme within the lyrics.
Caetano Veloso wrote "Vaca Profana" as a piece of holy blasphemy, and he says so in the title: "profane cow." He casts himself as an animal that refuses the herd, singing "Vaca profana, põe teus cornos, pra fora e acima da manada" (Profane cow, put your horns out, above the herd). Then he steals the language of saints and virgins for something much more bodily: "Dona das divinas tetas, derrama o leite bom na minha cara" (Lady of the divine udders, pour the good milk on my face). It is a hymn sung to appetite instead of God.
Once that joke is set up, the song turns into a scrapbook of a life on tour. A verse in Spanish complains "La leche buena toda en mi garganta, la mala leche para los puretas" (All the good milk in my throat, the bad milk for the squares), and a Catalan aside orders "orchta de chufa, si us plau" (horchata, please) between cities: Madrid, Barcelona, Naples, London, Bahia, Rio. He name-checks Picasso, a "torre traçada por Gaudi" (tower drawn by Gaudí), Stevie Wonder and Thelonious Monk in the same breath as Bethânia, mixing high art and home in one restless list. Sung here live with Maria Gadú, the two trade the refrain back and forth, and the closing "Deusa de assombrosas tetas, gotas de leite bom na minha cara" (Goddess of astonishing breasts, drops of good milk on my face) lands less like a punchline than a toast.
